PUMA “Hardchorus” football commercial

Puma’s football advertising connects soccer with romance with “The Hardchorus” as part of their Love=Football campaign. Football players and fans sing romantic songs like they’d sing them in the stands showing that you don’t have to give up sports to be romantic on Valentine’s Day. You can dedicate the song and send it to a loved one.

Savage Garden’s “Truly Madly Deeply” is showcased here. Filmed at the Beehive Pub in Tottenham, the group includes real Tottenham fans and some singers.  For the Italian speaking world, there’s a version of Umberto Tozzi’s 1977 hit “Ti Amo.” New York agency Droga5 produced.

The Puma Hardchorus

Song lyrics:  “Truly Madly Deeply”

Verse 1

I’ll be your dream
I’ll be your wish
I’ll be your fantasy.
I’ll be your hope
I’ll be your love
Be everything that you need.
I love you more with every breath
Truly madly deeply do..
I will be strong I will be faithful
‘Cos I’m counting on a new beginning.
A reason for living.
A deeper meaning.

Chorus

I want to stand with you on a mountain.
I want to bathe with you in the sea.
I want to lay like this forever.
Until the sky falls down on me…

Verse 2

And when the stars are shining brightly
In the velvet sky,
I’ll make a wish
Send it to heaven
Then make you want to cry..
The tears of joy
For all the pleasure and the certainty.
That we’re surrounded
By the comfort and protection of..
The highest power.
In lonely hours.
The tears devour you..
I want to stand with you on a mountain,
I want to bathe with you in the sea.
I want to lay like this forever,
Until the sky falls down on me…

Bridge

Oh can’t you see it baby?
You don’t have to close your eyes
‘Cos it’s standing right before you.
All that you need will surely come…

I’ll be your dream
I’ll be your wish
I’ll be your fantasy.
I’ll be your hope
I’ll be your love
Be everything that you need.
I’ll love you more with every breath
Truly madly deeply do…

Chorus

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Tandem Bicycle Kicks Result in Soccer Goal

A successful bicycle kick in soccer in a pressure situation is a rare event. Sometimes referred to as a chalaca or an overhead kick, this difficult move requires athleticism, some acrobatics, timing and courage.

Throwing oneself backward at a parallel angle to the ground and bringing one foot to your original head height, to kick the ball backwards, is no easy task. If properly executed, there’s a danger of contact with other players. Executed incorrectly, players can land on their heads. When soccer legend Pelé described the kick as, “not easy to do,” you know players face some challenges trying to execute this kick.

In this video clip from an October, 2009 Cup game in Brazil where Caio (Rio Branco) vs took on Serra, you’ll see two bicycle kicks resulting in a goal.

ENJOY THIS VIDEO

An Uplifting Soccer Story: The Fugees

A significant number of residents of Clarkston, Georgia come from war-torn countries like Afghanistan, Bosnia, Congo, Gambia, Iraq, Kosovo, Liberia, Somalia and Sudan. These refugees are typically given 90 days of government assistance and are then faced with an entirely different challenge: communicating with many who only speak English, finding employment or fitting in at school, and living in a new country.

Some of these refugees have found hope and a sense of community in soccer, a game that they played in their native countries. Jordanian-born Luma Mufleh serves as coach and manager for the Fugees, a soccer organization that she developed to help these kids, ages 9 – 17 years-old. In her role, she wears many hats. After each practice, tutoring sessions are held with the aid of volunteers. Player attendance is mandatory. She started a cleaning business in town that employs refugee women. She advises her players on a wide variety of topics.

The team has enjoyed success at many levels despite competing against better-funded teams. One of the Fugees received word that he’d received a academic and soccer scholarship which will cover all of his tuition. A book, Outcasts United: A Refugee Team, An American Town was recently published and a movie deal on the team has been inked with Universal. As part of the deal Universal is paying $500,000 to the Fugee Family, a non-profit set up to help support child survivors of war.

Read more about this uplifting soccer story:

Refugees Find Hostility and Hope on Soccer Field — NY Times

www.fugeesfamily.org

Fugees on Today Show — Part I

Fugees on Today Show — Part II

love.fútbol and their fields of dreams

The love.fútbol mission is to develop simple, safe soccer fields for children in impoverished communities worldwide. Most of their work to date has been done in Guatemala and several more projects are slated in that country, with plans to expand their reach in Central America and beyond.

The love.fútbol organization partners with local communities by providing the raw materials and a representative to facilitate the project. The local community is responsible for the planning, organization and volunteer labor.

The new fields frequently replace play areas where raw sewage, trash and glass are potential hazards for kids. The new, low-maintenance fields provide a safe environment for kids to enjoy a sport and all of the positive things that come with that. Because of the needed involvement of local residents, the building of the soccer field becomes as much a community project as a youth project.

Drew Chafetz and Alfredo Axtmayer, both of whom enjoyed soccer growing up, are the co-founders of love.futbol. Check out the love.fútbol website to see more examples of their good work, as they touch lives and help make communities feel good about themselves.

A trailer on the organization:

Amazing Soccer Goals

With 22 players on the field and just 1 ball, lots of crazy things can happen during a soccer game. For a game that is relatively low scoring — 2 – 0 and 2 – 1 are typical scores — soccer has more than its share of incredible goals. Some match-ups showcase greater offensive power. In a 1972 game, India beat Bangladesh 37 – 0.

Check out these 5 amazing soccer goals on the video below.

Soccer Sportsmanship at its Best

One of the more popular soccer customs happens in games across the world when a player is injured. Because the game of soccer has no time-outs, usually the only way action is stopped is when the ball goes out of bounds.

When the ball goes out of bounds, the team with the injured player can substitute that player off the field. So what can happen in a game is the team with the injured player, if they have possession of the ball and realize that a player is hurt, will quickly kick the ball out of bounds. But now, that team, has turned over possession of the ball to the other team for a throw-in. An unwritten soccer rule has evolved that the team who has the throw-in will quickly get the ball back to the other team in a display of sportsmanship. It puts both teams back into the position they enjoyed before the injury.

Referees will sometimes stop play because an injury is deemed so serious, but usually, players have already remedied the situation in a scenario like the one described above. This tradition might be one of the reasons soccer is called “The Beautiful Game.”

Check out this video where the player was trying to kick it out of bounds because of an injured player, but inadvertently scores a goal. The other team is given an opportunity to make up for the unplanned score, and does, but just barely.

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